Reims, Paris, and the start of my Periplus

The last week has been relatively uneventful, except for a couple of day trips I made.

Last Sunday, I finally got the chance to go to Reims. If you don't know about Reims, it's the capital of the Champagne region, a relatively large city, and an important college town. It's also where Benoît's parents live, so the perfect place for a grand family reunion and a chance "meet the American." There were tons of people there...somewhere around 20...sO it was quite the party! We ate delicious French food until we were sick (salmon patiné, pasta with meat, a full cheese tray, two desserts, and champagne), then decided to load most of the family up to go play laser tag. No that's not a mistake-laser tag. 13 of us played, from the youngest cousin and Nathan all the way up to 3 of the 4 grandparents. I came in 3rd thanks to my stereotypically-American shooting skills and mongoose-like reflexes. I would have won but I absentmindedly wore a white shirt...ok probably not but we'll pretend that's why I didn't win.

After our laser quest the Samsons went home, leavings with Camille and the grandparents for the rest of the evening. We went to the Reims cathedral to watch a laser-light show...it's hard to describe, but essentially they used the cathedral face as a projector screen for all sorts of lighting effects. It sounds weird but it was actually really cool...the building is beautiful, And with all the light effects it was even cooler.

I made it back to Soissons late that night and headed off to work the next day. I had the good fortune of having my Wednesday classes cancelled again, so on the spur of the moment I decided to go to Paris for the day. It was a typical day in Paris--I went to the Wine museum, which was kind of disappointing. The lack of organization and the blatant product placement at the end (Grand Marnier is not by any stretch of the imagination wine) overshadowed the few interesting artifacts. I was also frustrated by the cashier's refusal to speak French to me...I know I'm American, but if I'm speaking French I probably want to speak French. Oh well. The rest of my day was much better.

I got lost in the 2nd arrondissement for a while before I finally found what I was looking for: the Cabinet des Monnais. This was a real treat: it was free, and the collection of miscellaneous artifacts there was astounding. Highlights: some Byzantine ivory carvings, "Charlemagne's" chess set, and several nice Greek vases. Just like the old days :)

After that I made my way back to Gare du Nord to head home. The train was really full, and I got lucky with my seat mate--I made a new French friend! Speaking of French friends, one of my friends from Aix (where I studied abroad in 2009) now lives in Paris, and we're going to meet up soon after my vacation.

I've referred to my trip before--it finally started today! I'm currently in the airport in Vienna waiting for my friend from Vanderbilt Elena. I think her plane might be in too, so I should go; more info on my trip soon!